What a wonderful Outsider Art Festival in Helsinki and Espoo! A huge thank you to the artists, partners, teams, volunteers and, of course, our audiences. This year’s theme, HOPE, took many forms throughout August, from shared drumming to moving poetry and encounters through art.
Revisit the festival through our photo collection here. Below, the festival team shares highlights from Helsinki and Espoo.
One of the festival’s most memorable moments took place on the Night of the Arts at the Finnish National Opera and Ballet’s amphitheatre, where the tribute to park drummer Jarmo brought together around 750 people. The communal drumming in Jarmo’s honour filled Töölönlahti with rhythm and a warm sense of togetherness. Meanwhile, Encounters of Hope in the Opera’s Main Foyer offered a moment to pause and share thoughts on what gives us hope right now.
At Pertin Valinta x Tiketti Gallery, Forest of Hope brought together seven artists’ perspectives on what the world looks like and what it could look like. The Pertti’s Choice Stage also welcomed international guest artist Susanne Brokesch and Lauri Hyvärinen. Brokesch’s electronic experimentation and Hyvärinen’s distinctive approach to the guitar made for a fascinating evening of sound.
At Oodi, art invited everyone to take part. OAF graphic designer Klaus Welp’s striking MegOAFone installation gave people a space to make their voices heard. Natalia Tong-Ochoa’s Sauna of Hope installation created another welcoming space for shared encounters in Oodi’s Kuutio. ✨
The OAF x WSOY literary evening at the Finnish National Theatre’s Lavaklubi drew over a hundred visitors for poetry and music. DuvTeatern and Ragnar Bengtström’s moving poetry performance was one of the evening’s special moments. The Poetry Stage featured the distinctive voices of OAF poets, and a live set by Nykypost rounded off the night.
In Espoo, the celebrations continued at EMMA with the OAF x Espoo opening. Highlights included Aizhan Sultan’s wonderful concert and VHS-Klubi’s nostalgic Laser Disc Jury. Sultan’s music brought Kazakh traditions together with live electronics, while Laser Disc Jury took the audience back to the world of 1990s karaoke videos. Explore the programme at EMMA.
Art also became part of everyday journeys: the TOIVO exhibition brought large-scale prints of works by Juha Pesonen, Riina Noro and Mikael Valjakka to the Aalto University, Espoonlahti and Tapiola metro stations. At Lapinlahti, the festival’s satellite exhibition Treasures at Gallery Kirjo added to the visual arts programme, inviting visitors to discover treasures in the artists’ own worlds.
The Hope campaign and OAF Hope Talks discussion series ran through the festival, bringing together ideas from artists, audiences and people working in the cultural sector. At EMMA, a discussion on inclusive curating explored how artistic programmes can be shaped together, with different perspectives being heard. OAF artists and organisers also shared their voices on Radio Helsinki’s Pertin Valinnat broadcasts.
Thank you to everyone who helped create, experience and share this year’s festival. These are moments we’ll love returning to! 💜
P.S. What stayed with you from the festival? We would be so grateful if you could complete our 2026 visitor survey here. Your feedback helps us develop the festival and plan OAF 2027. Thank you for sharing your experiences!